Antipathy
by Altra
Summary: Changes abound at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. But with the notable and sudden absence of one student in particular, the entire game changes, and Ginny Weasley is forced to make amends with her enemies and with her own mistakes.
1. Prologue

A/N: I'm trying out a new strategy for this fic: an outline. I've up to chapter ten mapped out, and hopefully that should keep me from bailing mid way. I'm also playing with a 'no 'shipping' rule. I don't want this to turn into a 'ship fic, because invariably those get rather uninspired after a while. Of course, I'm a rabid shipper, but this fic is not going to be about romance or fluff. The final new thing which separates this fic from any other that I've written is that this one will have religion. Let me stress something though, if this is not your faith [it certainly isn't mine] don't take it offensively. It's not meant to be, it's only meant to add to the story.   


**Antipathy  
  
Prologue**  


It was defiantly an odd sensation. I could feel each needle puncture into my skin, and though they said it was nothing more than my imagination, I swore that I could feel each drop of ink slowly caress the base of my neck. I was silent, staring at the harsh, desolate waters of northern Scotland. The tide ebbed, before pummeling the jagged black rocks harder than ever before. The black night illuminated the white crests as they broke, and I felt the stinging mist against my chest as I stood before the congregation, letting them face my back.  
  
Everything seemed so meaningless.  
  
Just a month ago, I was hexed senseless on the train home from school. Just a month ago, I cared nothing more than who my father was. I cared for nothing but money and power.   
  
With every drop of ink staining my skin, I felt every important feature of my life diminish. My name didn't matter, my money didn't matter, and certainly my feud with Potter didn't. All that mattered was the... incredible feeling of peace.   
  
As one silver needle after another was threaded into my skin, the tattoo became more vibrant, glowing against my pale skin. Three wise men were appointed the task, to bind me into the Order. At first, I had been reluctant to join in my ancestral religion. What end would it help me achieve? I had thought of them as nothing more than old dirtbags, full of hot air and ready to complain about how the new generation had failed them.  
  
Of course, it wasn't. Every person in the Order did not use their relationships for anything other than its spiritual ties. The Order was not for discussing politics, though many in the Order also held ties to the darker side. Most of them were like me; chosen heir to the family, and to cement alliances, thus had to join the Order. The time when it seemed like a bother seemed so far away. I was more content with feeling my body shudder with unacknowledged pain and bliss every time a needle punctured and was removed from my skin.   
  
I heard nothing but the waves crashing on the shore. I felt nothing but the sacred ink. I saw nothing but the imperfect black sky. I tasted the salty ocean and smelt the biting wind.   
  
A voice cried loud, in a language forgotten to this time. And though I knew not the language, the words seemed incredibly clear to my ears.  
  
_"Bind to you, Aleitheia, forever this single soul!" _  
  
The final needle pierced my skin, and a black cross tinged red stood stark against my pale white skin.  
  
_Bind to you, Aleitheia, bind to you a Malfoy without a single regret in his blood._  


____________

  
"Ronald Weasley!" I screamed, hurtling myself down the rickety old stairs of the Burrow. He thudded down before me, cackling evilly, and waving my letter above his head as he went. I howled in anger, skipping the last step and launching myself through the living room into the kitchen.   
  
"What's wrong, little Ginny? Want the letter from your widdle boyfriend?" he cooed, edging his way around the dinner table.  
  
Stalemate. With either one of us on either side of the table, this could go on forever.  
  
"Give it to me!" I screeched, running around the table as fast as I could. Naturally, Ron ran in the other direction, and we chased each other madly until Percy popped into the room, and sleepy as he was, managed to pluck the letter out of Ron's flailing arms, hand it to me as I circled by him, and grab a spot of coffee left on the table before Ron even noticed what had happened.  
  
"My favorite brother!" I crooned, hugging him around the neck and shooting a triumphant smile at Ron. Percy mumbled something and shooed me away. I gleefully trotted back up the stairs, my letter from Dean tight in my hand.  
  
I had but a week of summer left, and most of my summer I'd spent missing Dean. We'd parted on great terms, but rarely got to see each other during the break. It made sense though; he was spending time with his muggle friends who were fast growing away from him. I couldn't begrudge him that, even if it did make me feel more than a little unwanted.   
  
I opened the door to my room and let it swing shut behind me, dive bombing my bed. Rolling onto my back, I tore through the envelope and began the letter with relish.  
  
_'Gin-'_  
  
I smiled already.  
  
_'How's your summer been?'_  
  
Dreadful. I spent the entire thing cooped up in the Burrow, far, far away from everything happening with the Order of Phoenix. There were too many memories for Mum to handle, so she, Ron and me all stayed home whilst the other brothers and Dad went off to handle the big things. Harry stopped by, but it was like visiting with a ghost, and not at all fun. Come to think of it, all I did was play chess with Ron, and chat with Dean through letters.   
  
_'Mine's been rather exciting, what with meeting up with all my old friends again. I went to a football game the other day, you've no idea how long it's been! It was Russia verses...'_  
  
Sorry love, I don't think I could handle another football story. Unfortunately, that's filled most of his letters this summer. I skimmed the rest of the paragraph (which was the main body of the letter), because it dealt with the inner workings of the game and explanations of a red card and so on. I picked up on the second paragraph though.  
  
_'Mum won't let me tell my friends anything that happens at school, and sadly enough, that includes you. My friends have taken in upon themselves to try to get me a girl. Oh, the insanity! They keep introducing me to these nice girls, but I have nothing to say to them, and find myself missing you even more.'_  
  
I stopped. What? Setting him up? He couldn't defy his mother's rules and tell them that he just had a girlfriend? What was going on?   
  
_'Anyway, I've been rather anxious to see you, have you gone to Diagon Alley yet?, if not, let's go together! Owl me back soon though, I think Mum wants to go in a couple of days.  
Love,  
Dean'  
  
_ I reread the letter, paying specific attention to every part of it, even the boring football section. There was nothing else to be said. He simply hadn't told his friends about me. But why? Would there really be so much harm in just telling them? And why would he still let his friends set him up? If he said no, who were they to disrespect his decisions? Argh! Why did he even tell me that? Ignorance is bliss you know.   
  
Downright agitated, and for no good reason might I add, I set about replying.  
  
_'Dean-  
My summer's been awfully boring, unlike yours. Why on earth did you decide to tell me about your love life with only a week left into the summer? You make it out that this dating of yours has been going on throughout the summer. Did you just feel the _need_ to omit it from your previous letters? Tell me straight.   
-Ginny  
P.S. I've already gone to Diagon Alley.'  
_  
In a huff, I rolled the letter up and gave it to the owl waiting on my window sill. Dean's owl was well trained; the damn thing wouldn't leave without a response, and it wouldn't let you sleep until you gave it one. I knew; I'd put one of Dean's letters aside in favor of a short nap, only to be rudely awaken every time my eyes drifted closed by the be damned owl.  
  
The owl took the note and flew off, taking most of my resentment with it. I felt bad that I'd lied about Diagon Alley. What was I supposed to say? 'By the way, I haven't gone to Diagon Alley yet but I don't want to go with you, you slimy git.' That was too harsh, considering all he did was go out with a few girls because his friends didn't know about us. Regardless, I settled down on my bed and stared at the ceiling. I had been looking forward to school and Dean, but now I felt myself beginning to wonder if school would prove to be the exciting place I thought it to be. It was last year, though in a most dreadful sense. This year, I expected to battle with Slytherins, spend quality time with Dean, and all those other things you think school is before you get there.  
  
But now my time with Dean would be severely hampered by the day's discoveries.   
_________  
  
A/N: Comments? Problems? Thoroughly in need to talk with someone? Hey hey, there's a little link box at the bottom there. Remember: "the work is nothing without the reader's reaction to it."  



	2. Chapter 1: New Beginnings

  


**Chapter 1: New Beginnings**

  


Draco sighed, letting his head fall back on to the cushy backing of the train seat he was on. With nothing to do, except stare at the tiny water stain at the top of the compartment, Draco settled into his thoughts, which even he had been avoiding.   
  
_Well, this year, I'm truly alone._ Glancing to his right, Draco felt himself frown, but only slightly. _Crabbe's off to Beaubaxton. It's incredibly unfair, the poor bloke doesn't know a bit of French._ Draco lulled his head back into the center of the cushion. He didn't even bother looking to his left. _Goyle's at Durmstrang, learning the Dark Arts under that traitor. This is the one year where I really could've used their support._   
  
"My life... is shit..." Malfoy said with a sigh, reveling in his own self pity.   
  
His father had been arrested and taken to Azkaban not long after his induction into the Order. Of all the times, when he needed his father's guidance the most, it was being stripped away from him.   
  
And he most certainly did not like it.   
  
Clenching a fist, Draco released something of a growl, feeling his nails beginning to bite into his palms. _Bastards! Who are they to treat him that way, after all my father has done for them! The morons, do the honestly expect the Dementors to stay loyal? What have those Ministry fools ever done to help the Dementors?_ Nothing._ Not a damn thing. They fucking force them to live on a tiny island in the middle of nowhere and they think that the Dementors would like that more than freedom?   
  
No creature deserves to be imprisoned._   
  
He sighed, though, releasing the upper crust of his anger. _No no, it does me no good to think these thoughts. I'll just end up going in circles again._ For the first two weeks after his father's arrest, Draco had done nothing but rant to anyone who would listen how ridiculously unfair the situation was. He only stopped when his mother had softly reminded him that murder, however justified it might seem, was simply murder. Draco did not think his mother a traitor to his father for that thought though. He knew she loved him as one can only love their spouse, but he also knew that she could not justify a lie any better than he could. She could be silent and cold in her ambiguity towards the issue, and Draco could whine like a little boy.   
  
_Goyle's parents sent him off to Durmstrang to keep him out of England and to keep his training going. Same reason why Crabbe was sent off to Beaubaxton. Why Mother won't just send me to one of those schools...! I can't believe that going to this godforsaken school will help me to learn anything of use. All they teach us here are bug beater spells and third rate magical creatures. When was the last time we studied something worthwhile? Second year, with Expelliramus. That was it. _   
  
Draco felt his anger beginning to grow again, and this time closed his eyes and took a deep breath.   
  
His hand unconsciously rubbed the back of his neck where his tattoo lay hidden underneath his hair. It had been a bother at first, to un-slick his hair and grow it out, but his mother has refused to allow him to parade his new mark around to the world. He secretly agreed with her, but that didn't make him feel any better about having hair in his face all day.   
  
The door to the compartment unceremoniously chose that moment to slam open and admit a most unwelcome sight.   
  
"Dean wait till we're inside!" a girl giggled, backing into the compartment, pulling well, Dean apparently, after her.   
  
"Gin, it's been all summer! How am I supposed to wait?" the boy moaned, releasing her hands and loping his arms around her waist.   
  
Draco raised an eyebrow before raising his voice.   
  
"Out. Both of you. Now." The two whirled around, the girl pressed back against her boyfriend. _Lovely. A Gryffindor couple._ He eyed the two of them during the split second pause, and made a second discovery. _A Weasley and another Gryffindor._   
  
"Hey Malfoy, what makes you think you can talk to us like that?" Dean demanded, pulling Ginny protectively against himself.   
  
"My compartment. Get out." Ginny regained her senses and shot the blonde an angry glare.   
  
"We made a mistake in compartments," she spat, turning around and pulling Dean after her. "At least you weren't rude about it."   
  
"Fuckers." Draco heard the door slam with extreme enthusiasm and smirked. He loved tormenting people like that. Oh, he knew very well that the youngest Weasley would take that last parting word like it was the most awful thing in the world. _That whole family is raised to belong to some sort of children's storybook,_ he thought with a snicker. _I bet the poor dear would wet herself if she ever saw a anything slightly illegal._   
  
Smirking one last time, Draco settled into a sort of conscious nap, letting his mind sleep while his body was still awake. The compartment door slid open again, but was quickly shut after whoever it was noticed who exactly was there.   
***   
"Did you catch the look on his face?" Dean said, voice filled with laughter.   
  
"I did, I did! It was classic, the epitome of Malfoy's arrogance and stupidity!" Ginny replied, choking for breath between giggles and tears in her eyes. Dean began his laughing anew, pulling Ginny onto his lap as he sat in the empty compartment they had found.   
  
The laughing slowly died down, and when it did, Dean seized the opportunity to look Ginny in the eye before pulling her down for a kiss.   
  
"Mmm...we need to talk," Ginny said, pulling back. Dean winced, shaking his head.   
  
"C'mon, Gin! I already told you that nothing happened!"   
  
"But why didn't you tell me when you first started going around with those girls?" she demanded, pushing his hands off and standing. Dean leaned forwards, placing his head in his hands.   
B "I honestly don't see why this is such a big deal! Nothing happened! I went out with maybe five girls, and each time nothing happened!" he exclaimed in seeming despair. He glanced up at Ginny through the slits in his fingers.   
  
She was standing back to him, hands on her hips. Her shoulders were drawn up slight, and she was tense. He could sense in the air that his answer was not to the question she had asked.   
  
"Why didn't you tell me?" Her voice was almost toned down to a whisper. Dean inwardly cheered, thinking that Ginny was all but ready to take him back.   
  
"Because I knew you'd react this was, love."   
  
_Because I'd... he..._ Ginny felt her hands clench into fists on her hips. _ That is the most ridiculous, 'please the little women' line I have ever heard! How can he think he's reading me correctly if he thought that would send me flying back into his arms?!_ She sighed, shaking her head, and walking to the compartment door.   
  
"Where are you going?" Dean asked quickly, standing to follow her.   
  
"I think it's time we took a break," she said simply, sliding the compartment door quietly shut. As if possessed, Ginny flew down the hallway to the bathroom, not caring as a prefect reprimanded her. Inside her haven, Ginny locked the door and pulled herself onto the sink.   
  
_He doesn't really mean that much to me, as a boyfriend at least,_ she thought, putting her legs into an upside down V over the basin. _As a friend, I'd hoped he would've been more open with me, but I guess all guys think they know women like the back of their hands._ She sighed again, resting the side of her head against the mirror.   
  
_Honestly, he didn't do anything wrong, but I don't know why that omission bothers me so much! It's not like he was the one flinging himself around, but I don't know... _   
  
"What do I want, if Dean couldn't be it?"   
  
The answer eluded her, and she slowly rocked along with the train until arriving at Hogwarts.   
***   
A/N: Well, they had to end some way ^_^ Jessie: I hope you meant wow in a good way... quill-angel68: Heh, you flatter me! I get the feeling a lot of people forgot about the whole Ginny/Dean bit... ^_^

  



End file.
